Access control system having a programmable automatic notification feature

ABSTRACT

An access control system such as a telephone entry system (TES) capable of seamlessly transmitting facsimile log reports to remote locations for storage. Alarms are selected such that upon an occurrence of an alarm, the access control system will send a fax to the selected phone number with information about the alarm situation and, for example, all the transaction information within the memory. Alarm situations can include, for example, a number of transactions, a specific person accessed, or code being used, a specific time of day, a specific time since the last alarm situation, a door staying open, and/or a door being forced open. Log information may be sent to an office located in a building that is remote from the access control system. This information may be sent in a standard format to any location around the world.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present invention is related to U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/984,341 entitled “A SWITCH MODE POWER SUPPLY FOR A TELEPHONE ENTRYSYSTEM OR THE LIKE” to J. Ahlstrom; U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/984,343 entitled “ACCESS CONTROL SYSTEM HAVING TENANT CODES THAT MAYBE SELECTIVELY DISPLAYED” to J. Ahlstrom et al.; and U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 09/984,344 entitled “ACCESS CONTROL SYSTEM INSEAMLESS COMMUNICATION WITH PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS AND THE LIKE”to W. Dow et al.; all filed concurrently herewith and assigned to theassignee of the present invention.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention is related to access control systems and moreparticularly to reporting activity on an access control system.

2. Background Description

Apartment buildings, office buildings, condominium complexes, gatedresidential communities, industrial parks and other secured locationsoften include an entrance access control system. One type of accesscontrol system, known as a telephone entry system (TES), providesbuilding security as well as tenant access control to a particularbuilding, apartment complex, etc. The access control system controlsentry at one or more other building entry points, e.g., doors, garagedoors, etc. A typical access control system includes a main control unitlocated at a primary entrance and, depending on the size of thestructure or area being monitored, additional remote units may beprovided to control remotely located doors. The access control systemmay also monitor the connected entry points for unauthorized access. Fora TES type access control system visitors wishing to enter thebuilding/complex contact tenants or other building personnel over theTES, that are capable of admitting the visitor by remotely unlocking theentrance, e.g., from the tenant's apartment.

The main control unit controls the main building entrance and mayinclude a keypad and auto-dialer and be connected to a public telephoneline. Remote units, typically communicate with the main unit to provideremote access to authorized personnel. The main unit can identifytenants seeking entry by a personal access code, authorize entry,monitor for unauthorized entry at the remote doors, etc. A tenantdirectory may be displayed on the control unit itself or on an adjacentsign. The directory includes tenant codes that are correspondingdirectory code numbers for each person, business or for other entitiesin the building (e.g., corporate departments, business employees, orother building tenants) authorized to unlock the entrances.

When a visitor enters a tenant code into the keypad, the main controlunit automatically dials the corresponding tenant's telephone number.Then, the called tenant has an opportunity to establish the identity ofthe visitor. The tenant, using the same everyday telephone upon whichthe call was received, unlocks the entrance, e.g., by pressing apredetermined number on the telephone keypad.

Some state of the art access control systems generate alarm calls undervarious conditions. If the access control system senses the door it hascontrol over is forced open, an alarm call may be generated. If the samedoor is opened by the access control system but fails to close after aspecified amount of time, an alarm call may be generated. Occasionally,someone may randomly enter codes at the keypad in the hope ofdiscovering an entry code. To prevent this, a count of the number ofinvalid sequential codes may be maintained. If a maximum false entrycount is met, an alarm call may be generated.

Normally, an alarm call is made by dialing a telephone number and, then,periodically beeping until the person answering the call presses a digiton a dual tone multifrequency (DTMF) telephone. A next level of alarmcall may be voice. At this level the system states “ALARM DOOR 1.”Again, the alarm process is terminated in response to pressing a digitfrom the answering telephone. The next alarm call level is a modem call.At this level the access control system uses the modem to call anothermodem and then, transmits a detailed description of the alarm call. Theoriginating modem identifies the originating unit experiencing the alarmcondition.

Some access control systems may log entries/exits or a number of otherselected events. Typically, a history log, e.g., of the last 2000 suchevents, may be maintained in system memory. Should the need arise toreview authorized and/or unauthorized building entries, such a historylog may prove to be an invaluable tool, provided the events of interestremain in memory. Often, the event log may be too short to containenough history to establish a telltale trend, e.g., relating the comingsand goings of a single missing tenant of a 200 tenant complex.

Periodically saving a printed log for storage may just present thecomplex manager with another apparently unnecessary task. Unnecessary,that is, until that one event occurs where reviewing the logs is apriority. It may be very tempting, rather than collecting the printoutsand sending them to storage, to just throw printouts into the trash,thinking no one will ever notice.

Thus, there is a need for a way to automatically send system alarm callsand other log information to the proper authorities or other authorizedpersonnel for attention, processing and/or storage.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is a purpose of the present invention to facilitate access controlsystem long term record retention;

It is another purpose of the invention to automatically provide accesscontrol system history for storage to selected remote locations.

The present invention is an access control system such as a telephoneentry system (TES) capable of seamlessly transmitting facsimile logreports to remote locations for storage. Alarms are selected such thatupon an occurrence of an alarm, the access control system will send afax to a selected phone number, sending information about the alarmsituation and, for example, all the transaction information withinsystem memory. Alarm situations may include, for example, a set numberof transactions, a specific person accessed, a code being used, aspecific time of day, a specific passage of time since the last alarmsituation, a door staying open, and/or a door being forced open. Loginformation may be sent to an office located in a building that isremote from the access control system. This information may be sent in astandard (fax) format to any location around the world.

Advantageously, faxing the alarm information allows using standardcommunications over potentially long distances.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing and other objects, aspects and advantages will be betterunderstood from the following detailed preferred embodiment descriptionwith reference to the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows an example of a typical building such as a factory withaccess controlled by a simple telephone entry system (TES) according tothe preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 shows an example of a main control unit;

FIG. 3 is an example of a peripheral control unit;

FIG. 4 shows an example of a minimum TES configuration;

FIG. 5 is an example of a building with a multiple access point TES;

FIG. 6 shows a main control unit upper electronics assembly in aninternal view;

FIG. 7 is an expanded view of the detachable handheld keypad;

FIG. 8 shows a block diagram of a motherboard enclosed in the maincontrol electronics assembly;

FIG. 9 shows a building with access controlled by a preferred embodimentaccess control system in communication with a remotely located faxmachine;

FIGS. 10A-B show an example of a word (ALARM) defined for faxing and anexpanded view of the letter A;

FIG. 11 is a flow chart showing how messages may be faxed.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Turning now to the drawings and, more particularly, FIG. 1 shows anexample of a typical site, a factory building 90 in this example, withaccess controlled by a preferred embodiment telephone entry system (TES)that, in response to a defined alarm condition, may automatically faxinformation related to the alarm condition to the proper authorities forresponding to the alarm condition.

Previously, access control systems did not fax an alarm call or othertransaction because of limited system resources. For convenience andbrevity a modem call transfers the information using ASCII characters.For example “ALARM” is 41 4C 41 52 4D in hexadecimal ASCII, where

‘A’=0×41=0100 1000

‘L’=0×4C=0100 1100

etc.

So, typically an access control system would use the modem to send 5bytes: 41, 4C, 41, 52, 4D.

By contrast, a typical fax page includes 1728 black or white dots perline (width) and 1143 lines (length). The preferred embodiment accesscontrol system converts messages from ASCII to dots for faxing. Theseare messages that would otherwise be sent using a modem, printed with aprinter or displayed on a computer display. The converted messages arefaxed to proper authorities, e.g., police, fire department, securitypersonnel, building management, as described hereinbelow.

So, returning to FIG. 1, the TES is in communication with one or moregeneral purpose computer 92. A computer terminal 94, such as a personalcomputer or the like, and a modem 96 are attached to the general purposecomputer 92. Product assembly lines 98, shown for example only, arelocated at one end of the factory 90. A parking lot 100, e.g., foremployee parking, is located at the front of the building 90. Thebuilding 90 includes a front entrance 102, a rear entrance 104 and anemergency exit 106 with attached sensors (not shown) indicating whetherthe door at emergency exit 106 is open or closed. In this example, thefront building entrance 102 provides passage to/from the parking lot 100and a gate 108 provides auto entry/exit to the parking lot 100. A codeentry unit, remote entry keypad 110, is located at rear entrance 104 forentering access codes. The gate 108 includes entry and exit code entryunits, external card reader 112 for requesting entry and internal cardreader 114 for requesting exit. A main control unit 116, which maycontain the fax modem, controls building entry directly at each of thefront entrance 102 and rear entrance 104 and monitors sensors at therear emergency exit 106. Further, to allow for the distance of the gate108 from the main unit 116, a peripheral unit 118 controls the gate 108and communicates with the main unit 116. The peripheral unit 118 passesentry/exit requests from the gate card readers 112, 114 to the main unit116 and, upon receipt of an authorization response to such a request,opens/closes the gate 108.

Card readers 112, 114 may include well known Weigard protocol cardreaders, Barrium Ferrite and Proximity Readers or ClikCard Receivers,for example. Access control system and TES are used interchangeablyherein. The present invention is described herein with reference to aTES type of access control system, for example only and not as alimitation. Further, although general purpose computer 92 is shown hereas being located on site, this is for example only. It is understoodthat computer 92 may be located at a remote site (not shown) and incommunication with the access control system over public or privatetelephone lines using a modem or any other appropriate communicationsmedia.

The preferred embodiment TES and the general purpose computer 92communicate with each other seamlessly. Entries made in the TES areseamlessly transferred to the general purpose computer 92 and updated incorresponding databases stored therein. Likewise entries made inselected databases within the general purpose computer or in other typesof selected files are reflected in the TES, seamlessly, and withoutrequiring manual intervention. Thus, for example, employees may be addedor removed from factory personnel logs stored in the general purposecomputer and, as each is entered or removed, the corresponding entrycode in the TES is added or deleted. In a more particular example, aHuman Resources person sitting at a terminal 94 may delete an employeefrom a list of employees in the general purpose computer 92. Upon suchdeletion, the general purpose computer 92 contacts the TES using modem96, and corresponding employee records stored in the main unit 116 aredeleted.

Furthermore, other types of entries, such as holidays, may be changed inthe main computer 92 and those changes reflected in the TES. So, forexample, in a first year Independence Day may fall on a Tuesday. Thatyear the company may decide to also make Monday, the third of July, aholiday. A Human Resources person enters the selection of July 3^(rd)and 4^(th) as holidays in the personnel system and those holidays areautomatically communicated to the main unit 116. In the following year,which is a leap year, Independence Day falls on a Thursday. So, thisfollowing year the fifth of July is also selected as a holiday. Thus,the Human Resources person deletes July 3^(rd) as a holiday in thepersonnel system and adds July 5^(th) as a holiday. The personnel systemcauses computer 92 to transmit the deletion of July 3^(rd) and theaddition of July 5^(th) as holidays to the main control unit 116. Inresponse to each set of holiday dates, the TES restricts access to themain building during holidays to selected management personnel, e.g., tothe factory manager and assistant manager. On normal work days, the TESopens the front gate 108 at 8:00 a.m. and closes it at 6:30 a.m.However, during the selected holidays, July 3^(rd) and 4^(th) of thefirst year and July 4^(th) and 5^(th) of the second, the front gate 108remains closed with access provided only through the card reader 112 andexit only through card reader 114.

In addition, information may be passed the other way as well from theTES to the main computer 92. The TES, monitoring rear entrance 106 mayreceive an indication that the rear door is open, e.g., from the doorajar sensor. Immediately, the TES faxes that information to the properauthorities. In addition, the alarm may be relayed to the generalpurpose computer 92 which displays a message on the computer terminal 94to a security guard, alerting the guard that the rear door has beenopened. In response to the rear door 106 being opened, the TES may alsosound a building alarm and dial an emergency number, to call the firedepartment for example. Coincidentally, as the TES sounds the alarm andcalls the fire department, the TES may report this information to thegeneral purpose computer 92 which may display the information toappropriate personnel.

Tenant or contact codes, such as for contacting departments within abusiness or tenants in an apartment complex, may be displayed on themain unit 116. The code sequence length for granting access is arbitraryand depends on the configuration of the particular unit. The preferredembodiment TES manages the admission process, recalling and dialingtenant telephone numbers and then, responding to dual tone multifrequency (DTMF) signals from their telephones to unlock a door, open agate or open another connected device.

These directory contact codes prompt the system to call a particulartenant. Each contact code entered into the main control keypad points tothe telephone number of a corresponding tenant. A visitor may enter atenant contact code into the main unit to call and communicate with anassociated tenant. Tenant contact codes can be linked to the tenant'scard or entry code, and may be deleted once the tenant leaves thebuilding, e.g., moves out, thereby removing the tenant's building accessauthorization. Thus, each tenant must be associated with at least oneindividual contact code. All codes are not required to be displayed inthe directory display, i.e, some codes may be unlisted.

This unlisted number feature allows tenants that desire privacy and wishto restrict awareness that they are tenants of the building to preventtheir contact code from being displayed. So, unlisted contact codenumbers are not listed in the display directory and are not displayable.Thus, only visitors that know an unlisted contact code can enter thecode to contact the tenant. Without knowing the unlisted contact code,visitors do not have information to contact the tenant. Also, tenantsmay select a tenant Do-Not-Disturb (DND) feature to block calls to thetenant during selected period.

So for example, where the preferred TES controls access to an apartmentcomplex, a visitor arriving at the building or complex, can find atenant's contact code on the main control unit 116 directory, providedthe code is listed. Then, the visitor may select or enter the tenant'scode and the preferred embodiment system will dial an associatedtenant's telephone number without the visitor knowing the tenant'stelephone number. Upon answering the call, the tenant may initiate oneof four actions by dialing a number on the telephone. These actions mayinclude activating first relay, for example, to open a front door orentry gate; activating a second relay to open another door or enablewhatever device is controlled by the second relay, e.g., an elevator;and, continue to talk to the visitor.

In addition, building tenants can access the building using thepreferred embodiment TES, which controls entrances and selectivelygrants access. Typically, each tenant has an assigned access code and/orcard to access the complex. As the tenant enters a corresponding accesscode on a keypad or, cards in using a card reader (connected to one ofthe main control units 116 or peripheral unit 118). The system checks todetermine if the entered access code is valid. If the code is valid andaccess is not restricted for the particular entrance, the system grantsaccess by unlatching the entrance, e.g., opening a front gate or garagedoor.

Access codes are enabled programmably to allow tenants to enter or exitthrough one or more gate(s) or door(s). Entrances are symbolicallylinked to the tenant's access code and links may be deleted when atenant moves out. Entry cards, like access codes authorize entry. Thus,swiping the card through an entry card reader or touching a smart cardto a smart card reader, provides access at an authorized entrance.Authorizations for entry cards as well as access codes may be restrictedto certain entrances and for selected time periods or generallyauthorized for all building entrances and at any time. A valid doorstructure (VDS) grants tenant access to a set number of doors, and maydeny access to other doors. So, for example, a VDS may be createdauthorizing tenant access to the front and back door, but not to amanager's door or a garage door. A second VDS may be created for themanager to authorize access to all doors.

Also, access restrictions may be placed on codes to reduce thepossibility of a card or code being used by more than one person. Periodrestricted or time zone access may limit the times of day that access isallowed through a particular entry location, e.g., access may berestricted only to the front entrance of a building during night hours.An anti-pass back restriction may be one of two types, either true ortimed anti-pass back. True anti-pass back requires that each entry bematched by an exit before re-entry is allowed. Timed anti-pass backrequires that a defined period of time pass before the same card or codemay be used again for re-entry by the same reader or keypad. If thetimed anti-pass back feature is set to time out in sixty seconds, forexample, the system will not grant access to anyone trying to re-enterusing the same code or card at the same reader until, for example, sixtyseconds have elapsed from the most recent entry.

Likewise, a Strikes-And-Out feature may be included to prohibitunauthorized persons from guessing an entry code. The Strikes-And-Outfeature allows a selected number of erroneous code entries beforetemporarily disabling a code reader at a particular door for a specifiedamount of time. Upon occurrence of a Strikes-And-Out, an alarm maytrigger a fax notification of the occurrence. An anti-pass backforgiveness feature may be timed, such that after expiration of theforgiveness period, entry using the same code or card may be resumed.So, for example, after midnight entry may be made re-using a blockedcode or card to the same building.

For convenience, use frequency limits or period limits may be placed oncards or access codes, to allow issuance of temporary cards or accesscodes that are authorized for limited numbers of uses or for a limitedperiod of time. Use limited codes or cards grant entry for set number ofuses. Thus, a code or card may be authorized for sixty uses over thecourse of a month, for example. Once the card use exceeds that sixty-uselimit, the code or card is no longer valid and the card may bediscarded. Period limits may include date limitation wherein cards oraccess codes are authorized for entry until a specified date, i.e., anexpiration date. For example, a tenant may be scheduled to move out ofthe building on December 1^(st) of the current year. The expiration datefor that tenant's card or access code may be set for December 1^(st) andthereafter, access to the building is not authorized for either the cardor access code. First-Use time limited cards or access codes authorizeentry for a set number of days/hours/minutes after first use. Forexample, a tenant may have access for an unspecified week which beginsto run upon the first entry. After the first entry, the tenant can usethe card/code to enter and exit the building for a week until the periodexpires and is no longer valid. Start-Now time limited cards/codes aresimilar to First-Use time limited cards/codes providing authorizedaccess over a period of days/hours/minutes beginning immediately.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a main control unit 116 and FIG. 3 shows anexample of a peripheral unit 118. The main control unit 116 houses amain system motherboard (not shown) as well as TES software andbuilding/tenant related data. A keypad 120 is included on the main unit116 for numeric code entry, e.g., entering access codes or tenant phonenumbers to contact tenants. A display 122 is provided for displayingtelephone numbers stored in the system, as well as providing interactiveinformation and for viewing any diagnostic information that might bedisplayed during entry or normal maintenance. Both the main control unit116 and the peripheral unit 118 include keyed access points 124, 126.Unlocking each unit's housing provides access to system circuitscontained within the particular unit 116, 118.

The main unit control 116 includes four internal relays and preferablyis capable of supporting four (4) peripheral units 118. Further, in thisembodiment each peripheral unit 118 includes four relays. Thus, besidespedestrian access control, relays can by employed for generating alarms,bypassing an alarm, providing elevator access control, controlling closecircuit television (CCTV), controlling a gate operator and, for heatingand air-conditioning system control. Each of the main control unit 116and peripheral units 118 also include an interface for an exit requestsensor and door position sensor. When attached, the exit request sensorsenses when a request is placed for exit through the door, e.g., abutton is pushed to request exit. A door position sensor senses when adoor has been pried open or is otherwise open and/or remains open, e.g.,for more than a minute after a relay deactivation.

Messages such as greetings, general information or warnings may beprogrammed into the main unit 118 for display on the display 122. Aseries of system menus are provided on the display 122 for manuallyprogramming the preferred embodiment TES. These menus are navigableusing a menu prompt, scrolling through each menu level to identify andselect an active value that corresponds to a desired menu action. Themenus may be navigated by pressing numbers or characters on the keypad120 that prompt a currently displayed option. Command prompts may beidentified as appropriate, such as using a designated character,underscoring, highlighting or placing a cursor below the prompt.Further, depending on the number of displayable lines on the maincontrol unit display 122, scrolling up and down the menu lines may berequired as the number of current menu lines may exceed the number oflines that may be displayed. Further, the preferred embodiment TES mayconvert messages to a foreign language, e.g., by pressing a main controlkeypad 120 number to select displaying messages in Spanish.

A manager call button 128 may be included on the keypad 120. Pressingthe manager call button 128 prompts the system to call a preselectedmanager's telephone number. Up to four different manager telephonenumbers can be accompanied with a call schedule for each number suchthat calls are placed to selected ones of the manager phone numbersdepending on the time of day, for example. A programmable manager's callschedule, sets times when visitors are allowed to contact the manager.Call schedules for up to four managers may be programmed with eachmanager having up to four sub-schedules and each sub-schedule having upto four segments. In addition, the manager call button may beselectively disabled to prevent visitors from contacting the manger fromthe main unit during any period that it is disabled. So, for example,the manager call button may be disabled between midnight and 5:00 AM andthe preferred embodiment TES would not respond to pressing the Managercall button during those hours.

FIG. 4 shows an example of a building 130 with a minimum TESconfiguration. Building 130 includes a front door 132 and a rear door134, access through both of which is controlled directly by a maincontrol unit 116. In this example, a card reader 136 is provided at thefront door 132 for requesting access and a remote keypad 138 is at therear entrance 136 for exit. Also, in this example of a simple TES, acard reader 140 is included at the rear entrance 136. Remote entryrelays 142, 144 are provided, each controlled by the main control unit116, to remotely open/lock the respective front entrance 132 and rearentrance 134.

Additionally, the access control system of this example includes aprinter 146, a computer terminal 148 and a telephone 150 connected tothe main unit 116. The printer 146 is included for printing out periodicreports, periodic system dumps or diagnostics information. The computerterminal 148 may be used with an interface program such as SPSWin fromSentex Systems for example, to program the control unit 116 and maintaindata in databases. Telephone 150 provides another point of internalaccess to the system telephonically and, correspondingly, to buildingtenants connected to the system. Also, the main control unit 116accesses an external telephone system, e.g. for fax/modem communicationsfunctions.

The TES records all transactions including telephone calls and any othersystem activity and may send a report in any number of ways. Forexample, the fax modem may be used to fax the report to a remote faxmachine, the printer may print the report locally, the display maydisplay the report or, the modem may send the report to a remotecomputer terminal. Logged transactions may include any activity such asvisitor directory calls, tenant entry references (whether granted ordenied), card or code activity and any other activity that the systemmanager may select, whether at the main control unit or a peripheralcontrol unit. Further, reports may be scheduled for automatictransmission, at a previously selected time to a previously selecteddestination.

FIG. 5 shows an example of an expanded access control system controllingmultiple access points in Building 150. In this example, a single maincontrol unit 116 communicates with two peripheral units 118 to controlremote entry. Main unit 116 controls both peripheral units 118 anddirectly controls access to central doors 152, 154. Each peripheral unit118 controls access to a remote pair of doors 156, 158 and 160, 162.Further, each of a remote keypad 154 k, 156 k, 158 k, 160 k, 162 k and acard reader 154 c, 156 c, 158 c, 160 c, 162 c is located at each of theentrances 154, 156, 158, 160 and 162. In this example, a closed circuittelevision camera (CCTV)164 connected to main unit 116 is located atentrance 152, for monitoring activity at that entrance. A button 166 maybe located at door 152 to request exit from the building. A closedcircuit TV monitor 168 is located internally to the building formonitoring activity at entry 152, e.g., by a guard and for grantingaccess to entrance 152. The guard may authorize entry through telephone170, through a dedicated input device (e.g., a button), through acomputer or through any other appropriate device. Each of remoteperipheral units 118 and main unit 116 controls a pair of relays labeledA and B, each of which remotely opens/closes or locks/unlocks arespective one of the doors.

Each of the main control unit 116 and any connected peripheral units 118may be configured for one-door control or two-door control. For one-doorconfiguration, the unit controls one door for entry or exit and includesthree other relays that are available for other functions such as,shunting or bypassing an alarm, triggering an alarm or activating aclosed circuit TV. For a two-door configuration two relays are availablefor shunting or rerouting an alarm.

When a tenant swipes a card or enters a code, the TES response mayinclude one or more relay actions, e.g., a door will cycle, the CCTVwill cycle on, etc. A relay activation structure (RAS) controls relayresponses to entry cards or codes. Each RAS defines one or more relayresponses and is associated with an entry card or code. Relay commandsare provided for programmable individual relay control and select relayresponse to an entry request. A cycle command causes a selected relay torespond by opening and then closing after a period of time, e.g.,buzzing in someone to a locked building. A latch-open command energizesthe relay, for example, to unlock the door and leave the door unlockeduntil prompted to re-energize the relay, thereby re-locking the door. Alatch release command returns the relay action to a default setting,e.g., if the door is open after responding to a latch open command,issuing the latch release command returns the corresponding relay to thecycle state. An initial default state may be selected such that relaycontrol is set to that default state upon system power up.

The system may monitor door status to determine whether it is held openmore than a predefined maximum time and, otherwise, determine whether acontrolled door is stuck open, i.e., a building security breach hasoccurred. An open door condition may elicit an alarm call wherein usingthe modem, the system transmits an alarm message to a designatedcomputer or to a fax machine. Alternately, the system response to anopen door may be to close a relay that turns on an alarm light or thatsounds a siren to inform a monitoring station of the perimeter breach.

When an alarm is triggered (e.g., because a door has been forced open),the preferred embodiment TES automatically sends an alarm message overthe modem to a designated recipient e.g., a computer terminal or a faxmachine. The alarm message typically includes an alarm unit ID toidentify the open door so that the message recipient knows the alarmorigination point. The alarm call unit ID is programmable in the TES asis the number of retry times for dialing the number. Also, alarms may beenabled or disabled, e.g., for maintenance purposes. In the event of analarm, the preferred embodiment TES reports the alarm by calling apreviously designated location, which may be a fax machine, a terminalconnected through a modem, an alarm company or to a pager. If thelocation does not answer the call or the number is busy, the controlunit repeatedly hangs up and redials the same number until the systemconnects or, until the redial retry number is met. If, alternately, adirect connection is provided to a computer, printer or other reportingdevice, the TES reports the alarm condition occurrence directly, postingor printing a message that indicates the occurrence, e.g., on theattached printer.

FIG. 6 shows upper electronics assembly 180 in an internal view of anopen main control unit 116. The upper electronics assembly 180 includesa detachable handheld keypad 182 and a display 184 which may be a liquidcrystal diode (LCD) display. A pluggable memory module 186 is showninserted at the top of the upper electronics assembly 180. The pluggablememory module 186 is, preferably, flash electronically programmable readonly memory (Flash EPROM). Local audio communications may be effected inan intercom-like or speaker phone fashion through the faceplate of themain control unit 116 using a microphone 188 and speaker 189.

Two types of data that may be saved or reloaded into the main controlunit using the pluggable memory module 186. These two types of datainclude, unit data and operating data necessary for normal operation andis inserted during initial installation. Unit data includesuser-generated data for the particular control unit. Such user-generateddata may include code entries for tenants. Operating data includes anydata required by the main control unit to operate. A backup module maybe inserted periodically to backup/restore unit or operating datafrom/to the control unit memory. The backup module also may be used forupgrading the control unit operating system.

FIG. 7 is an expanded view of the detachable handheld keypad 182 whichis an alphanumeric keypad. The detachable handheld keypad 182 includes anumeric section 190 and an alphabetic section 192. The numeric section190 includes several cursor keys 190 c, a backspace key 190 b, an escapekey 190 e and a clear key 190 cl. The cursor keys 190 c facilitatenavigating between displayed menu entries, e.g., on the display 184 inFIG. 5. The backspace key 190 b functions to eliminate a singlepreviously entered number or character at a time. The escape key 190 emay be used for canceling an erroneously entered command key sequenceand/or terminating a command, i.e., aborting. A single stroke of theclear key 192 cl clears displayed entries.

The alphabetic section 192 includes several hot keys 194, typicalalphabetic keys and an enter key 196 as well. The hot keys 194 include anumber of shortcut keys for bypassing menu navigation and directlyselecting and initiating a previously stored procedure. Hot keys 194 mayinclude, for example, an enter phone number key for adding a new phonenumber to the stored listing; a delete phone number key may be includedfor removing entries from the list; and, an enter code key and a deletecode key may be included for adding/removing codes from the listing.Card authorization may likewise be managed with enter card and deletecard keys. A time/date key may be included for recalling and updatingsystem time. A transaction key may be included for recalling and viewinglogged system activity such as for example, visitor to tenant directorycalls, tenant entry (granted or denied) and card or code activity. Whileeach of these corresponding commands may be otherwise effected through aseries of alphanumeric key entries, hot keys 190 provide a much simplerfaster shortcut.

FIG. 8 shows a block diagram of the motherboard 200 of the electronicsassembly according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.The motherboard 200, essentially, includes two subsystems, a controlsubsystem 202 and a signal processing subsystem 204. Further, eachsubsystem 202, 204 includes an address bus 202A, 204A and a data bus202D, 204D.

The control subsystem 202 includes a microcontroller 206, which may be ageneral purpose microprocessor or, preferably, is a 16-bit, single chipcontroller such as the XA-S3 microcontroller from PhilipsSemiconductors. The control subsystem 202 includes memory, preferably,both dynamic random access memory (DRAM) 208 and Flash EPROM 210. Ifnecessary, a memory controller 212 may be included for controllingaccess to and refreshing the DRAM 208 or, if the microcontroller 206 iscapable, the memory control function may be provided directly by themicrocontroller 206. When installed in the main control unit 116 withthe motherboard 200, the pluggable flash memory module 186 in FIG. 7 isalso included in the memory in the control subsystem 202. A real timeclock (RTC) and peripheral interface 214 also is included in the controlsubsystem 202.

The microcontroller 206 in control subsystem 202 manages a programabletransaction auto reporting function to automatically send a record ofall transactions that are currently stored in the main control unitmemory at the preselected time to a selected destination, e.g., to aterminal, fax or a printer. Transactions may include records of systemactivity such as a directory call, an open door, entry card or codeactivity, etc. Auto reporting may be triggered by count number, aspecified day or time or, a combination of transaction count andday/time. Count only scheduling triggers a report automatically when thecount reaches a specified number of transactions, as selected by thecomplex manager, for example. When the transaction count reaches thatnumber, the transactions report is transmitted to the destination. Ifday/time reporting is selected, all log transaction are transmitted on aselected day and time. Count and day/time reporting allows transactionreport transmission if the count reaches a selected level prior to thescheduled day/time.

As noted above, system transactions or records of system activityinclude records of events such as a directory call, an open door, entrycard or code activity or anything else identified as system activity forlogging or reporting. Reports are transmitted, for example, to aprinter, a fax machine or a computer terminal. Since computer terminalsdo not have identical modem transmission capabilities, the preferredembodiment TES has a programmable baud rate, selectable for a particularcomputer terminal or printer. Optionally, the preferred embodiment TESmay send transaction information in real time. Further, real timetransmission may be programmed to begin at some future time and continueuntil the system receives a termination command to end real timetransmission. Also, interactive report transmission may be selected torequire a response to a manual prompt at the time of transmission. Thus,when the programmed transmission time occurs, the prompt is presented toan operator, e.g., the building manager, who may approve or denytransmission.

The heart of the signal processing subsystem 204 is a digital signalprocessor (DSP) 216, preferably, 24-bit DSP 56303 from MotorolaCorporation. The digital signal processor 216 is connected to memorysuch as, for example, static RAM (SRAM) 218 and Flash EPROM 220. Thedigital signal processor 216 interfaces externally to the main controlcircuit 200 through a communications interface 222.

The main control unit communicates with the outside world through anynumber of connected optional interface devices that may be connected tothe real time clock (RTC) and peripheral interface 214 or to thecommunications interface 222. The DSP data bus 204D is selectivelyconnectable to the control data bus 202D and the DSP address bus 204A isselectively connectable to the control address bus 202A.

In particular, the RTC and peripheral interface 214 communicates withconnected remote units, e.g., peripheral unit 118 above. Also, connectedinput/output (I/O) devices such as a display, e.g., an LCD display 184,an RS422 printer port, an RS232 serial port, keypads including handheldkeypad 182, and card readers all communicate with and are controlled bythe microcontroller through RTC and peripheral interface 214. Further, areal time clock in the RTC and peripheral interface 214 maintainscurrent date and time information that may be used, for example, inlogging or in timed operation. Programmable Time Zones are defined astime periods during which particular access codes and card codes areenabled. So, if a group of tenants is intended to have access to thecomplex only during certain hours and/or on certain days of the week, atime zone may be identified for those specific periods and that timezone assigned to that group of tenants. Each time zone may have fourdifferent schedules/segments with a maximum of fifteen different timezones. Further, holidays may be identified and included or excluded fromparticular time zones.

Also, a timed control system may be included for setting relay controlsto automatically open/close or enable/disable certain connectedfunctions or features at preselected periods. Thus, for example, thesystem may automatically unlock and open the front gate daily and laterre-lock or close the gate, at times that are specified within thesystem. So, continuing this example, the front gate may automaticallyopen at 7:00 am and close at 7:00 pm. Further, typical holidays may beidentified such that the gate does not automatically open even if aholiday falls on a weekday. A free exit may be provided through anymonitored door such that opening the door to exit does not cause a doorforced opened condition during the exit. A post office and firedepartment entry feature referred to as a postal lock provides accessusing a dedicated lock and key. The local fire department may have acommon key that allows access through the postal lock. Access to thecomplex using either of these is through the access control system andtreated as a normal entry.

Communication interface 222 provides both audio and telephoniccommunications interface functions. Audio communications may includesound from the main control unit microphone and speaker. Both themicrophone and speaker volume may be controlled programmably. Telephoniccommunications may include a modem/fax modem function and providing atelephone handset interface for either or both of touch tone or rotarydial type telephones.

The modem provides for both incoming as well as outgoing communications.The modem may be set to answer an incoming call after a selected numberof rings. A preselected length may be set for visitor to tenant calls toprevent unintentionally tying up the line by leaving a call connectedindefinitely, blocking other calls to the tenant as well as to thecontrol unit. Dialing may be selected for either touch tone or a pulsedialing depending upon local telephone company capabilities. If CallerID is available, incoming telephone numbers may be logged for each callalong with any corresponding system/tenant response or action.

If a voicemail system is attached to the TES, voicemail may beconfigured from the main control unit. Also, voicemail may be programmedto intercept calls and to screen visitors for tenants. To use thisvoicemail control feature of the preferred embodiment system, a visitorplaces a tenant call and the voice mail system answers the call. Then,the visitor can bypass voicemail and contact the tenant by dialing anextension (a number with up to six digits) on the front panel keypad. IfCaller ID is available through the local telephone service, the systemmay retrieve the caller's number for the tenant to return the calllater. A PBX enable/disable and dial-in feature provides callconfiguration capability to dial a number for outside access, e.g., 9. Adial-up unit ID feature allows assignment of a 6-digit identificationnumber such that a person dialing into the unit can retrieve the unit IDto determine whether the caller has contacted the correct unit.

The preferred embodiment access control system includes the capabilityto provide audible signals, e.g., beeps, in response to various inputs.So for example, an access granted beep may be provided by the maincontrol unit speaker when granting tenant/visitor access. Also, talktime beeps on the telephone may indicate when visitor to tenantcommunication approaches the end of the selected talk period. Theseaudible alerts may be disabled or enabled as desired.

In addition, the access control system according to the preferredembodiment of the present invention may facilitate information exchangesand other communications between itself and other systems such as ageneral purpose computer running a personnel or bookkeeping system. Suchseamless communication is described in detail in “Access Control SystemsIn Seamless Communication With Personnel Management Systems and TheLike” to Dow et al. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/984,344 assignedto the assignee of the present invention and filed coincident herewith.

FIG. 9 shows a building 230 with access controlled by a preferredembodiment access control system in communication with a remotelylocated fax machine 232. Access to front entrance 234 is controlled by amain control unit 236 mounted adjacent to entrance 234. Access to garageentrance 238 is through card entry reader 240. Thus, the access controlsystem and, especially main control unit 236, may be programmed asdescribed hereinabove such that after 250 accesses to garage entrance238 have occurred, for example, the log is faxed to remote fax machine232. Upon receipt of the fax at fax machine 232, the fax may be reviewedand, if anything of note is included in the fax, that may be forwardedto proper authorities. Otherwise, the fax may be stored or archived forlater disposal or possible subsequent use.

FIG. 10A shows an example of a word (ALARM) 240 defined for faxing andletters 242, 244, 246 and 248 included in the word 240. FIG. 10B is anexpanded view of the letter A 242 in FIG. 10A. In this example, eachletter is an array of black or white dots. Selection of an 8 by 8 arrayfor each character is for example only and not intended as a limitation.Significantly improved character readability may be achieved using 9×16character arrays with a corresponding increase in transmission rate ortime. As noted above, each fax page contains 1143 scan lines and eachline contains 1728 dots. Letters are faxed by alternating between whiteand black dots.

For this 8 by 8 character example, each character is represented by acorresponding ASCII code. As can be seen from FIGS. 10A-B, eachcharacter may be described as an eight byte bit map with a white dot orpixel represented by a zero (“0”) and a black dot or pixel representedby a one (“1”). So, the A in FIG. 10B can be represented by thefollowing binary sequence with the corresponding hexadecimal inparenthesis.

0000 0000 (0×00)

0001 1000 (0×18)

0010 0100 (0×24)

0010 0100 (0×24)

0011 1100 (0×3C)

0010 0100 (0×24)

0010 0100 (0×24)

0000 0000 (0×00)

This can be stored in a character memory as:

Byte Character_A [8 bytes]=0×00, 0×18, 0×24, 0×3C, 0×24, 0×24, 0×00.Each of these bytes represents a scan line through the character as maybe accessed using a scan line variable. Thus, textual lines may beconverted to scan lines using, for example, 5 variables as in Table 1below.

TABLE 1 Variable Defines Scan_line the current scan line.Character_Index which character within the test string is activeCharacter_Pixel which pixel within the current character is active.White_Pixel whether this is a white or black pixel set. Pixel_Countnumber of pixels to transmit.

FIG. 11 shows a flow chart 250 showing how lines may be prepared forfaxing messages as described for ALARM in FIGS. 10A-B. First, in step252 the character labels are initialized, to point to the first pixel ofthe first character of the first scan line on the first page. Also, thepixel count is set to zero and, since typically, the top line of eachASCII character is blank, the first pixel is a white pixel. Next, instep 252 the current line in the current character is checked for a dotcolor change location, i.e., from white to black. For the first linethere will be no dot color change in step 254. After the first line istransmitted and the subsequent line is encountered, dot color changesoccur when white dots change to black and vice versa as each dot orpixel is transmitted for a character. In step 256, all dots of currentcolor up to the identified dot change location are transmitted. In step258, after having transmitted all dots of the same color, a check ismade to determine whether the last transmitted dot is at the end of acharacter and, if not, continuing to step 260, the dot change locationis made to the current dot location. In step 262 dot color is switched.Then, returning to step 254 a check is made to determine the next dotcolor change location. Again, in step 256 all dots (to the dot changelocation) of the same color are sent. In step 258 the last sent dotlocation is checked to determine if it is the end of the character. Ifit is determined that the last transmitted dot is at the end of acurrent character, then in step 264, the current dot location is checkedto determine if it is at the end of a line. If not, then in step 266 thenext character is selected and, returning to step 260, the first dot forthe next character in that line is selected. Otherwise, if in step 264the end of the line is encountered, then in step 268, a check is made todetermine if the end page has been encountered. If the end of page isnot encountered, then, in step 270 the next line is selected andreturning to step 266, the first character of that next line isselected. In step 268 if the end of the current page is beenencountered, then in step 272, a check is made to determine whether theend of message has also been encountered. If not, then in step 274, thevariables are reinitialized for the next page and, returning to step270, the beginning of the first line is selected and in 266 the firstcharacter is selected. Otherwise, transmission ends in 276.

Advantageously, the above described access control system fax alarminformation using standard (fax) communications over, potentially, longdistances. System resources are not consumed in preparing the data forfaxing. Faxes are treated much like a print or modem basedcommunication. Log entries, alarm information or other data areformatted for faxing on the fly and transmitted as formatted.

Having thus described preferred embodiments of the present invention,various modifications and changes will occur to a person skilled in theart without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It isintended that all such variations and modifications fall within thescope of the appended claims. Examples and drawings are, accordingly, tobe regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive.

What is claimed is:
 1. An access control system automatically sendingsystem information to a remote maintenance location, said access controlsystem comprising: a main control unit telephonically in communicationwith entities within a building, said main control unit being mountableat an entrance to said building; a fax modem controlled by said maincontrol unit; at least one code entry unit to receive access codes, eachsaid code entry unit providing received said access codes to said maincontrol unit; and at least one controlled door, access through each saidcontrolled door being provided by said main control unit in response toa correct access code entered at one said code entry unit, said maincontrol unit logging system activity; whereby said main control unitselectively faxes system log reports over said fax modem to a remotelylocated fax machine.
 2. An access control system automatically sendingsystem information to a remote maintenance location as in claim 1,wherein one of said at least one code entry units is a keypad located onsaid main control unit.
 3. An access control system automaticallysending system information to a remote maintenance location as in claim2 wherein said at least one controlled door is two or more controlleddoors, said main control unit controlling and logging access throughsaid controlled doors at entrances to said building, at least one ofsaid entrances including a remote said code entry unit.
 4. An accesscontrol system automatically sending system information to a remotemaintenance location as in claim 3 wherein said remote code entry unitis a keypad, said main entry unit logging keypad entries.
 5. An accesscontrol system automatically sending system information to a remotemaintenance location as in claim 3 wherein said remote code entry unitis a card reader, said main control unit logging card reader entries. 6.An access control unit automatically sending system information to aremote maintenance location as in claim 3 further comprising aperipheral control unit in communication with said main control unit,said peripheral control unit controlling at least one remotelycontrolled door at an entrance remotely located from said main controlunit, said main control unit logging peripheral control unit activity.7. An access control unit automatically sending system information to aremote maintenance location as in claim 6 further comprising a remotesaid code entry unit at said remotely controlled door, said remote codeentry unit communicating with said main control unit through saidperipheral unit.
 8. An access control system automatically sendingsystem information to a remote maintenance location as in claim 7wherein said remote code entry unit is located external to saidbuilding, entry requests being placed by entering an access code at saidremote code entry unit.
 9. An access control unit automatically sendingsystem information to a remote maintenance location as in claim 8wherein said remote code entry unit is a card reader.
 10. An accesscontrol system automatically sending system information to a remotemaintenance location as in claim 8 wherein said remote code entry unitis a keypad.
 11. An access control unit automatically sending systeminformation to a remote maintenance location as in claim 8 furthercomprising a second remote code entry unit located internal to saidbuilding, access code entries to said second remote code entry unitrequesting exit from said building, said main control unitauthenticating access codes, said peripheral unit opening said remotecontrolled door responsive to authenticated access codes being enteredin either said remote code entry unit, each entry and exit at saidremote controlled door being logged.
 12. An access control systemautomatically sending system information to a remote maintenancelocation as in claim 2 further comprising a monitor connected to saidmain control unit, said main control unit displaying system informationon said monitor.
 13. An access control unit automatically sending systeminformation to a remote maintenance location as in claim 2 furthercomprising a closed circuit TV camera, said closed circuit TV camerabeing remotely controlled by said access control system, each activationof said closed circuit TV being logged.
 14. An access control systemautomatically sending system information to a remote maintenancelocation as in claim 2 wherein said main control further comprises adisplay, said display selectively displaying a menu of availableoptions, selection of selected ones of said options being logged.
 15. Anaccess control system automatically sending system information to aremote maintenance location as in claim 14, the main control unitfurther comprising: a microphone to receive voice communications frompersons requesting building access; and a speaker to provide audioresponses to said persons requesting building access.
 16. An accesscontrol system automatically sending system information to a remotemaintenance location as in claim 14, the main control unit furthercomprising: a memory module; an electronics assembly adapted to receivesaid memory module, said memory module being pluggable into saidelectronics assembly, said display being attached to said electronicsassembly; and an alphanumeric keypad, said access control system beingprogrammable directly from said alphanumeric keypad, access controlcodes being programmable into said main control unit using saidalphanumeric keypad, program entries being selectively communicated,seamlessly, to said general purpose computer.
 17. An access controlsystem automatically sending system information to a remote maintenancelocation as in claim 16 wherein said electronics assembly unitcomprises: a control subsystem to control connected peripheral units andcontrolled doors, receiving and authenticating access codes andmonitoring unauthorized accesses and logging said system activity; and acommunication subsystem to pass voice communications telephonicallybetween said entities within said building and individuals seekingbuilding access, said communication subsystem including said fax modem,and said communication subsystem sending and receiving faxes by said faxmodem.
 18. An access control system automatically sending systeminformation to a remote maintenance location as in claim 17 wherein saidcontrol subsystem comprises: a microcontroller controlling buildingaccess, communicating access authorization changes to the generalpurpose computer and changing access code data in response tocommunications from said general purpose computer; memory storingcurrent access codes, system related program code, data and system logs;a handheld interface and real time clock communicating with said generalpurpose computer; and said memory module, program initialization dataand operating codes contained in said memory module.
 19. An accesscontrol system automatically sending system information to a remotemaintenance location as in claim 18 wherein said memory includes FlashEPROM and dynamic random access memory.
 20. An access control systemautomatically sending system information to a remote maintenancelocation as in claim 17 wherein said communication subsystem comprises:a digital signal processor, said digital signal processor beingprogrammable as a fax modem, said fax modem comprising said digitalsignal processor; memory storing code for said digital signal processor;and a communications interface providing a voice interface with saidmicrophone and audio interface with said speaker at said main controlunit and providing a telephonic interface to a connected telephonesystem responsive to said digital signal processor.
 21. An accesscontrol system automatically sending system information to a remotemaintenance location as in claim 20 wherein a selected condition in saidcontrol subsystem causes said communication subsystem to fax a report tothe remote maintenance location.
 22. An access control systemautomatically sending system information to a remote maintenancelocation, said access control system comprising: a main control unittelephonically in communication with entities within a building, saidmain control unit being mountable at an entrance to said building; a faxmodem controlled by said main control unit; at least one code entry unitto receive access codes, each said code entry unit providing receivedsaid access codes to said main control unit; at least one buildingfunction being provided by said main control unit in response to acorrect access code entered at one said code entry unit, said maincontrol unit logging system activity into a log report; and said maincontrol unit comprises apparatus for selectively faxing log reports oversaid fax modem to a remotely located fax machine.
 23. An access controlsystem automatically sending system information regarding a building toa remote maintenance location, said access control system comprising: amain control unit telephonically in communication with entities within abuilding, said main control unit being mountable at an entrance to saidbuilding; a fax modem controlled by said main control unit; apparatusfor collecting status information regarding the building connected tosaid main control unit for logging system activity into a status logreport; and whereby said main control unit selectively faxes status logreports over said fax modem to a remotely located fax machine.